Dakota Dickerson has signed a two-year deal with Newman Wachs Racing that will take the 19-year-old through the first two rungs on the Mazda Road to Indy ladder.

Dickerson will spend next season in USF2000 and then step up to Pro Mazda in 2018.

"I am extremely excited to be a part of the Newman Wachs Racing team," said Dickerson. "A two-year commitment to the team is something that is extremely exciting and I believe sets up both NWR and myself for great success in the coming years. I look forward to representing the team and am working hard to come out strong for the opening race at St. Petersburg."

Dickerson won a $200,000 scholarship from Mazda Motorsports in the 2015 Skip Barber Championship Shootout to secure a place for himself in this year's USF2000 field, and finished ninth in the points with Afterburner Autosport.

Illinois-based NWR is owned by Eddie Wachs and, until his death, Paul Newman. The team spent more than a decade competing in various categories, and launched its first driver-development team in Champ Car Atlantic in 2006.